TUF fight: Jon Jones vs. Chael Sonnen booked for April

UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones will put his title on the line against former no. 1 middleweight contender Chael Sonnen on April 27, following their duty as opposing coaches on the next season of “The Ultimate Fighter” on FX (TUF 17) which will debut in January.

UFC President Dana White confirmed the news with the LA Times on Tuesday.

“This should be a good one,” White said. “Jon has accepted the fight. He knows the fans want to see that fight.”

White said the April date was necessary for the Jones vs. Sonnen match in order to give Jones time to fully heal from the arm injury he incurred in the first round against Belfort when the veteran nearly submitted him.

Sonnen (27-12-1) hasn’t fought at light heavyweight since 2005, when he lost to Renato Sobral via second round submission at UFC 55. He most recently suffered a second round TKO loss to Anderson Silva for the middleweight title at UFC 148 in July.

Fans will recall Jones turned down an initial fight with Sonnen on a week’s notice at UFC 151 after his original opponent Dan Henderson was injured. The event, which was scheduled for September 1 in Las Vegas, was left without a main event and was ultimately cancelled.

if Sonnen lasts more than part of round one it is because Jones isn’t in the ring

Chief Don

you know with challegers like Henderson, Gustasson, Teixiera, Davis and more on the line, it is hard to unertand the Jones-Sonnen match except for the UFC making money at Sonnen’s expense

http://prommanow.com/ Jack Bratcher

Dana just said all the guys bitching about Chael turned down the fight with Jones, and Chael stepped up. White also said, Jones is hurt and can’t fight til April, so in the meantime these other guys will keep fighting. From a sports standpoint the fight of course makes no sense.

Kelvin Hunt

It doesn’t really make sense..but it does do a few things…allows fighters like Gustafsson and Teixeira(and whoever else) to assert themselves as legitimate title contenders by the time Jones runs through Chael…TUF will get a small boost(won’t mean much though) and will get a good PPV rate on that Jones/Sonnen card.

About Jack Bratcher

Founder and Editor of Pro MMA Now (www.prommanow.com) and staff writer at ADCC (www.adcombat.com). My all-time favorite TV show is The Sopranos and the first book I ever bought was on Astral Projection. I still have a skateboard and play Xbox One when I have time. I believe a gym is a play room for adults. Reach me at prommanow@gmail.com or on Twitter at @PROMMA.